EZMT UpdateA webinar demonstration of the Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Thursday, September 20, at 4pm ET/3pm CT/2pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: https://bluejeans.com/355741337Audio: 866.226.4650, Meeting Id: 355 741 337#

After a brief introduction about the project and user interface, a live demonstration will highlight:
• Modeling updates to solar, wind, and corridor models extending them to the 48 contiguous states
• Examples of locating and analyzing higher suitability solar, wind, and energy corridor locations in the western U.S.
• Most notable new mapping layers - added, updated, or extended to the full U.S.
• Audience questions and comments

Four layers: Water Availability, Water Cost, Water Areas of Concern, and Water Consumptive Use, have been added to the EZMT mapping library. The data were developed by Sandia National Laboratories and provide results at the 8-digit hydrologic unit level (HUC8) for the eastern U.S. An EZMT report to provide results for user-specified areas based on this information is under development.

Due to expiration of the commercial license on March 15:
• The following Platts mapping layers were removed: Power Plants, Substations, Pipelines (including Natural Gas, Crude Oil, and Refined Products)
• Modeling layers based on the layers above were removed from the modeling library and default model configurations.
• Reports which used the removed data have been removed, and are in the process of being revised to use new non-commercial sources where they exist and are of sufficient quality. Affected reports include: Corridor, Electrical Transmission, Existing Hydropower Dams, Pipeline, Power Plants, and Pulverized Coal.
• New non-commercial replacements to the mapping and modeling libraries for some of the removed information will be added shortly.

Please contact ezmt@anl.gov with questions, comments, or suggestions for alternative data sources that could be added.

Several significant changes will be made to the energy infrastructure data in the EZMT:
• Due to expiration of the commercial license on March 15, the following Platts mapping layers will be removed: Power Plants, Substations, Pipelines (including Natural Gas, Crude Oil, and Refined Products)
• The Platts transmission line layers (planned and existing) will be renewed for another year and kept available
• See the Utility category in the mapping data library for many non-commercial layers that will remain.
• Modeling layers based on removed data will also be removed, including Distance to (any) Pipelines, and Distance to Substation
• The best available non-commercial data for the removed layers, will be added, many from the DOE Energy Information Administration.
• Power plant and corridor suitability models will be updated to remove or replace the removed modeling layers.
• Modified default/system models will be recomputed.
• Reports and report sections depending on removed data will be removed or updated with non-commercial sources: Affected reports include: Corridor, Electrical Transmission, Existing Hydropower Dams, Pipeline, Power Plants, and Pulverized Coal

Please contact ezmt@anl.gov with questions, comments, or suggestions for alternative data sources that could be added.

Several changes were made to the wind resource data and wind turbine models:
• New wind resource layers were added to the mapping library (see previous news item)
• Wind resource data in the mapping and modeling library from AWS Truepower was removed, due to expiration of the commercial license
• New wind resources were added to the modeling library
• The system/default land-based and offshore wind turbine models for 80m and 100m heights were updated to use the new resource data
• Saved model results using the AWS data are still available, but have to be switched to use the new layers if they are revised/recomputed using the model results "gear" icon

New layers for annual average wind speed have been added for 80m and 100m heights. The layers cover North America and are derived from results computed at Argonne using the Advanced Research WRF (ARW) Version 3.7 modeling system.

Updates to extend the mapping layers and reports in the EZMT to cover the entire United States have started. As a first step, the Platts energy infrastructure layers in the mapping library were updated, including power plants, transmission lines, substations, and pipelines. These layers also extend into Canada and Mexico.

A new layer which represents the two Wind Energy Area (WEA) leases which will go up for auction on November 9th, 2015 has been added to the website. For more information on the layer please visit: http://www.boem.gov/New-Jersey/

A new layer has been added to the EZ Mapping tool which represents major ridgelines at a 1km scale in the United States. The layer has been added to the main data catalog and is also available as a modeling layer which can be added to land-based wind turbine models. This layer is from Wind Prospector at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory ( https://maps.nrel.gov/wind-prospector/ )

Energy Planning and Climate ChangeA webinar demonstration of the Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Wednesday, August 26, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/ezmt_demoAudio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

This demonstration will highlight the recently added climate change data based on the 2014 National Climate Assessment, and the climate change report which facilitates analysis of climate-energy issues for user-defined areas.

As part of a broader task to increase the energy-water capabilities of the EZMT, a new Climate Change
Report has been added. Data cited in the 2014
National Climate Assessment (NCA) relevant to energy planning was also gathered and added as
mapping layers. The new report samples the layers in a user-specified area and provides a concise
summary of the following topics: projected temperature change and cooling degree days, sea level rise,
water stress, and flood magnitude trends. The report also includes excerpts from the 2014 NCA with
links to the document itself.

The 2014 NCA summarizes the impacts of climate change in the United States and projects the effects
we can expect in the future. It was written by the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP),
which resulted from the Global Change Research Act of 1990. Representatives from 13 U.S. federal
agencies participate in the program, and the NCA is updated every four years.

An option to run models as draft (faster/lower resolution) or final (slower/higher resolution) was added to the Model Launcher dialog. The option applies to, power plant models, corridor suitability models, corridor routes generated from endpoints, and any user-defined model.

The draft models run at 1km resolution, and final models run at 250m resolution. When generating corridors from endpoints, final runs require an input corridor suitability model run with final quality.

Planning a Potential Energy ZoneA webinar demonstration of the Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, July 28, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/ezmt_demoAudio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

This demonstration will show how to use models to locate a potential energy zone suitable for several different technologies, study the location with the analysis tools, and generate potential corridor routes linking it to the transmission grid.

A new layer was added, depicting the results of a Thermoelectric Power & Thermal Pollution Model (TP2M) for the northeast U.S. TP2M is a simulation model that simultaneously quantifies thermal pollution of rivers and estimates efficiency losses in electricity generation as a result of fluctuating intake temperatures and river flows typically encountered across the temperate zone. Results include estimated monthly and annual average temperature changes due to power plants for 2000 to 2010. The scope of the modeling includes rivers with discharges of at least 5 cubic meters/second, and results are computed at a 5 km cell resolution.

The Protected Lands layer has been updated with protection level changes to several different Federal property classifications. The default models for each energy type have been updated with this change.

New Corridor Route Generation ToolA one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, June 30, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/ezmt_demoAudio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

This demonstration will feature the recently-released tools to generate potential energy corridor routes using a modeling process.

Generating and Using ReportsThis webinar about reports in the Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, May 26, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/ezmt_demoAudio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

The Energy Zone Mapping Tool provides reports on many topics, and they can be used to analyze energy resources, energy infrastructure, siting constraints and opportunities, and model results. We will demonstrate each report with real-world examples of using them for analysis.

Version 4.0 of the user interface has been released with the following changes:
• The Areas/Corridors tool has been separated into Areas, and Corridors,
• The Corridor Tools dialog now has two tabs, one for saving user corridors, and one for corridor suitability models,
• New corridor suitability models and ability to generate a corridor from two endpoints will be enabled soon,
• A Print tool was added,
• Notification messages when reports and models are launched and when they finish, and
• Several other user interface improvements were made.

A print tool has been added to the mapping interface. It uses the extent and layers in the current map and generates a PDF. Formatting choices include letter or landscape sizes, landscape or portrait orientation, and three resolution settings.

Corridor AnalysisA one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Thursday, March 26, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demoAudio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

This one-hour demonstration will focus on analyzing planned or potential electrical transmission and pipeline corridors, including how obstacles can be identified and avoided early in the planning process.

Highlight on Natural GasA one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, February 24, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demoAudio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

This one-hour demonstration will highlight natural gas data, reports, models, and policies in the system and how use to the tool for energy planning and analysis in the Natural Gas sector.

A Wednesday, January 28, 2015 webinar covered the database of public policies information in the Energy Zones Mapping Tool. The database contains information on all the public policies that are relevant to clean energy development in the various states within the Eastern Interconnection. The presentation was given by Warren Leon, Executive Director of the Clean Energy States Alliance, and Heather Rhoads-Weaver, Founder of eFormative Options. They covered how the inventory of policies was compiled, demonstrated how the database can be used to find specific policies, and also discussed trends in state energy policy that affect clean energy development.

Tour of the Mapping LibraryA one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Thursday, January 29, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demoAudio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

This one-hour demonstration will be a tour of the the mapping library, which has over 260 map layers available for your use, including energy resource and infrastructure, environmental, siting factors, references, and many others. Most layers can be downloaded, and all have metadata describing their sources and other details.

Please join us on Wednesday, Jan 28th at 3 pm ET for a webinar presentation on a database of public policies information in the Energy Zones Mapping Tool. The database contains information on all the public policies that are relevant to clean energy development in the various states within the Eastern Interconnection. The presentation will be given by Warren Leon, Executive Director of the Clean Energy States Alliance, and Heather Rhoads-Weaver, Founder of eFormative Options. They will cover how the inventory of policies was compiled, demonstrate how the database can be used to find specific policies, and also discuss trends in state energy policy that affect clean energy development.

State-level policy summaries have been updated in the policy search page. To view a state summary, choose one of the states in the County/State/Province list and click Search. A link to that state's summary will be included at the top of the search results.

Also, in preparation for corridor modeling, units in all "distance to" modeling layers were changed from miles to meters, and existing default model configurations were changed accordingly to offset the change.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, December 16, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#. This one-hour demonstration will highlight issues related to energy and water, including the data and analysis capabilities in the tool now, and planned enhancements.

The following map layers have been added to the EZ Mapping Tool: • National Wild and Scenic Rivers System • Nationwide Rivers Inventory • Renewable Energy Leasing Area • Thermoelectric Power Plant Water Use (2010)

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Wednesday, November 19, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.This one-hour demonstration will highlight the corridor analysis capabilities currently in the tool and more about the planned corridor enhancements.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, August 26, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#. This demonstration will highlight solar energy resource data, and utility-scale concentrating solar and photovoltaic suitability models.

The July 29 webinar about the EISPC EZ Mapping Tool was recorded, and can be accessed at https://youtu.be/rrlCKxyZ-0c.
This session provides a short introduction to the project and web site, followed by a demonstration of the wind energy data and models in the tool.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, July 29, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#. This demonstration will highlight wind energy data, models, and reports.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, June 24, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#. The webinar will highlight the Policies, Regulations, and Incentives database, and the Clean Energy States Alliance will help present it.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, April 22, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#. This demonstration will highlight biomass energy data, models, and reports.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Thursday, March 20, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT. Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#. This demonstration will highlight the many reports in the tool and how they can be used for analysis.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, February 25, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT.
Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo
Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.
This session will highlight recent updates and natural-gas models and reports.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, January 28, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT.
Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_tool_demo.
Audio is either via the webinar, or phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.
This session will concentrate primarily on running models and evaluating results.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Thursday, December 12, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT.
Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc131212.
Audio is by phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

Comparison of existing wind turbine locations from the FAA database vs. the default land-based wind turbine models showed that slope was causing areas with existing ridge-line wind farms to have low suitability. Slope was eliminated from the default land-based wind turbine model parameters and pre-computed system models. If desired, slope (or any other input modeling layer) can be added in user-defined models.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, November 12, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT.
Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc131112.
Audio is by phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool will be presented on Tuesday, October 22, at 3pm ET/2pm CT/1pm MT.
Use the following link to access the webinar: http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc131022
Audio is by phone: 877-685-5350, access code 853223#.

A "Download Shapefile" action was added to the Map Layer Catalog. This function downloads a .zip file of the selected layer, including GIS data files, metadata, and field descriptions. Some layers cannot be provided for download due licensing which does not allow redistribution from this web site. While the mapping library is maintained to keep data current, most layers are available from their original sources. We recommend reviewing the included metadata to determine the original source, and checking with that source for newer data or more information. Also, creators of the original source data may have additional citation requests or requirements described in the metadata.

A free two-hour EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool training seminar will be presented on Thursday, September 12, at 11am ET/10am CT/9am MT.
The training seminar will include instruction on mapping tool functions, such as adding and removing data layers, and running suitability models and reports.
Presenters will demonstrate examples and provide participants with the opportunity to observe how to use the mapping tool to analyze regions and technologies of interest.
Time will be provided to answer questions. Class size is limited and registration is required.
Use the following link to register: https://www.regonline.com/EZMappingToolTrain-Sept12.

New features include:
• Model Result Report: This new report lists results for a user-specified area, detailing the results of any suitability model. Graphs provide a visual summary of the model output and each input layer, providing quick insight into how each input layer contributed to the outcome. The report also documents all the input layers, weights, and suitability values used for the model run.
• User-Defined Models: Any layer in the Model Layer Catalog can now be added to an existing model, or used to design a completely new model.
• Synergy Models: The Model Launcher now supports Synergy Models to map the suitability of multiple technologies. Previously run models can be combined and individually weighted to produce a single composite map. For example, combining models for wind turbines, solar PV, and geothermal would help identify locations that could accommodate all of these technologies. The Final Report to be released in September will provide added guidance about positive and negative synergies of collocating power plants of different types.

A free two-hour EISPC Energy Zone Mapping Tool training seminar will be presented on Thursday, August 29, at 11am ET/10am CT/9am MT.
The training seminar will include instruction on mapping tool functions, such as adding and removing data layers, and running suitability models and reports.
Presenters will demonstrate examples and provide participants with the opportunity to observe how to use the mapping tool to analyze regions and technologies of interest. Time will be provided to answer questions. Class size is limited and registration is required.

The new Demand-Response report lists, by state, results of the Navigant Consulting, Inc. Assessment of Demand-Side Resources within the Eastern Interconnection.
The report includes energy efficiency, demand-response, energy storage, distributed generation, and smart grid estimates for 2012-2030.

Default suitability model results have been completed for each energy technology. These are found in the “Results” window. Users can now view any model without having to run it first by adding these layers to your map.

Analysis Areas have been extended to include a tool to draw corridors using a line and a width in feet.
A corridor report was added which lists a wide variety of information for screening-level assessment of corridors.

A free EISPC Energy Zones Mapping Tool hands‐on training session will be held during the NARUC Summer Committee Meetings in Denver, Colorado.
Training will include instruction on mapping tool functions, such as adding and removing data layers, and running models and reports.
Trainers will demonstrate example case studies and provide participants with the opportunity to use the tool to analyze regions and technologies of interest to them.
Class size is limited and registration is required.
Please email Donna Brunner of Argonne National Laboratory at dbrunner@anl.gov to register.

Those who would like to attend this training on Sunday July 21, 2013 are invited to apply for a Reimbursement Authorization for Travel (RAFT) and should contact Sharon Thomas, Program Officer at NARUC (sthomas@naruc.org). RAFTs will be awarded on a first‐come, first‐served basis.

Two new biomass models and a natural gas model have been added. The biomass models represent a new biomass-fired plant with traditional combustion and a biomass plant co-fired with an existing coal plant. The natural gas model is for a new combined-cycle gas turbine plant.

Help features including descriptive pages and videos have been added to the web site and the mapping tool. From the web pages, access help through the menu at the top right. Within the tool, access help through the splash screen that appears when the tool is launched. This window can be reopened by clicking "Help" at the top right of the page.

A free EISPC Energy Zones Mapping Tool hands-on training session will be held during the NARUC Summer Committee Meetings in Denver, Colorado.
The training session will be held on Sunday, July 21, from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Training will include instruction on mapping tool functions, such as adding and removing data layers, and running models and reports.
Trainers will demonstrate example case studies and provide participants the opportunity to use the tool to analyze regions and technologies of interest to them.
Do not miss this opportunity to obtain expert assistance using the EISPC Energy Zones Mapping Tool and discover how it can improve the efficiency of clean energy planning for the Eastern Interconnection.
Class size is limited and registration is required. Please e-mail Donna Brunner of Argonne National Laboratory at dbrunner@anl.gov to register.

A one-hour webinar demonstration of the recent updates will be presented on Tuesday, April 30 at 11am ET/10am CT/9am MT.
The demonstration will concentrate on recent improvements to the tool interface, the policy database, new data layers, and using the tool for its primary purpose: identifying areas with high-density clean energy resources that could provide significant new power generation from a diverse set of energy resources and power production technologies.

To access the webinar browse to http://anl.adobeconnect.com/eispc_seminar, choose “Enter as a Guest”, provide your name, and click “Enter Room”.
For audio, use one of the following numbers, and enter the participant code:US (Toll): 1-719-234-7800, or
US (Toll Free): 1-888-850-4523.Participant Code: 766042.

The energy infrastructure data within the EISPC EZ Mapping Tool now have scale limitations (scale dependencies). When a user zooms in beyond scale level twelve (1:136,494), while viewing energy infrastructure data, the layer(s) will stop displaying. In addition, the layer(s) legend in the table of contents will collapse.

Energy infrastructure layers (all layers in the Utilities category) including the Bentek Energy/Platts data were temporary removed from the mapping library until limits to the level of detail of mapping displays can be implemented and approved.

Updated transmission line styles have been added. Users can choose display transmission line capacity ranges on the map (ex. 220 kV lines and greater, 345 kV lines and greater, etc.) by right-clicking on the transmission line layer in the table of contents, choosing Layer Properties, and using the Styles tab to change the style.

The power plant data has been restructured. There are now three power plant layers that have been broken out by status (existing, planned, and not operational/unknown). New symbology styles have also been added to allow the user to look at individual resource power plants.